Five months into the new crisis response agency, patterns begin to emerge

By Diane Hettrick

The Regional Crisis Response Agency (RCR) grew out of the RADAR program which originated with Shoreline Police and City of Shoreline. The program sent crisis-trained social workers on police calls that involved people with social and behavioral issues.

The program expanded to other north end cities. It is now the Regional Crisis Response Agency (RCR -pronounded 'racer'), serving and supported by a coalition of five north end cities: Shoreline, Lake Forest Park, Kenmore, Bothell, and Kirkland.

The RCR Principals Assembly

The new agency is overseen by the Principals Assembly with elected officials from all five cities: 

• Shoreline Councilmember John Ramsdell
• Lake Forest Park Councilmember Larry Goldman
• Kenmore Councilmember Debra Srebnik
• Bothell Councilmember Jenne Alderks
• Kirkland Councilmember Neal Black

On June 28, this body met for the first time to review the foundation of the RCR Agency as well as services provided so far this year.  

The councilmembers also discussed how they would define and measure success as the Agency continues to grow and provide services for more people across North King County. Finally, they heard feedback from the RCR Community Advisory Group, made up of individuals who have lived experiences in the crisis system, about desired program outcomes.

The Executive committee is composed of the city managers / administrators from all five cities. The Executive Director is Brook Buettner, who has been with the program from the very beginning.

In the first five months of the year (January 1, 2023 – May 31, 2023),  RCR Crisis Responders provided services for a total of 438 individuals in our communities, during a total of 1,228 encounters.

Of those individuals served for whom race data was available (n=211), 73% were White, and 27% were Black, Indigenous or People of Color (BIPOC).

Of those for whom housing data was available (n=223), 37% were homeless or unhoused. Of all individuals served, 55% identified as female, 43% identified as male, and 2% identified as trans, non-binary or other gender expression.

The regional mobile crisis services provided by RCR begin with a person-centered approach focusing on compassionate and immediate crisis response, de-escalation, resource referral, and follow-up tailored to the specific needs of those experiencing behavioral health challenges.